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A European Union flag waves in the wind in front of the chancellery in Berlin Friday after the European Union won the Nobel Peace Prize. The EU won the prize for fostering peace on a continent ravaged by war, giving bruised leaders of the 60-year-old European project a badly needed boost in morale.

This morning, the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to the entire European Union. The first thought I had upon hearing that news was "Great, how much can they pawn it for?"

It was also pointed that out that, ironically, the selection committee is out of Norway, a nation that would fit perfectly into the EU - except that it had chosen not to join. A wise choice, especially considering both the absolute and relative strength of the Norwegian economy (lots of oil, it's like a snowy Saudi Arabia, also they made a conscious decision to use the oil wealth for the good of their entire society, not just for whichever Viking stumbled upon it first in the North Sea).

Anyway, my other thought was that there are good years and stupid years for the Nobel Peace Prize, I'm not sure which this will turn out to be. Remember that Yasser Arafat once won, shortly before becoming the father of modern day terrorism. Also, one-termer Jimmy Carter for some unenduring reason no one can remember. They also gave Henry Kissinger the award for signing the Vietnam Accords, in the meantime he had been secretly bombing Laos.